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Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Honour the Process

This morning I was standing in my kitchen using my new handheld coffee grinder (courtesy of my wonderful sponsors Primalabs) and as I ground the coffee beans a thought came to me. I could be using a coffee pod, or I could have an instant coffee, or I could even by pre-ground coffee, but instead I am grinding the beans for my morning cup by hand. Ultimately they all achieve the same end goal, a morning caffeine hit, but one just takes a lot more work. It reminds me a little of Japanese Tea Ceremony compared to dropping a tea bag in a cup. So as I stood there cranking that handle, I reminded myself that “the destination is worth the journey”, however the obvious question that came from that, was “is the journey more important than the destination?” We have all heard expressions to that effect before, particularly in regards to Jiu Jitsu. As I started thinking about that a bit of a possible contradiction came to me….


I am sure everyone would agree that Jiu Jitsu is about searching for efficiency, efficiency in technique, in training, in learning and in teaching. For example “can I learn this move effectively in one lesson instead of ten?” Striving to develop efficiency is arguable the human tendency that ‘brought us down from the trees’ so it is, I think a good thing. In fact without it, our martial arts training would probably be as simple as lifting more weights to become the strongest. The quandary arises when we realise that increasing efficiency can often reduce the time taken in a process. I could have taken five seconds to spoon some instant coffee into a cup and added water. Instead I ground the beans by hand and added them to the plunger and let it seep which took about five minutes.

As usual my mind started to apply this thought process to Jiu Jitsu, and I thought about the five to six years I took to become a blue belt verses the one to one and a half years that some can take. Arguably there is no skill difference if we are all blue belts, but there may well be an experience difference. When I think of my journey so far I think about how many different people and grappling styles I have been exposed too, how many different people I have had the chance to train with/learn from/teach and how many trends have come and gone in techniques and games. I think that perspective is something that can come from a longer journey and I feel that I have really benefited in this regard.

So as I sat down to drink my morning coffee, with my five minutes of reflection coming to an end, I decided that while striving for efficiency is very important, it is the experience that really shapes us. So in other words, while shortening the journey is a great goal, making sure you pay attention on the way is just as important.

Friday, October 03, 2014

A New Sponsor

I am really happy to announce that I now represent and am sponsored by Primalabs. These guys have great nutritional products as well as Caveman Coffee and the Onnit range.

I don't usually agree to be sponsored, but after discussing this with Alan and Nicolle who run the company I have decided that it is a good fit for me. Largely because the reason that they chose to approach me for sponsorship isn't due to my accomplishments or skills, but rather due to my ethos and the culture I promote. Since these are the things that are the most important to me in training I think this is a great fit. It also doesn't hurt that I believe that Primalabs is a fantastic company that strive to both provide genuinely good products, but also to operate in a way that benefits the community as well.

Please check them out remember to use the discount code "gerry" for a 10% discount on your purchase.

Don't forget to sign up for their newsletter for the whole story on me and their other representatives.

Check out this link for my bio on their site.